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17.2.16

THE SHIP TAVERN, HOLBORN

The Ship Tavern isn't somewhere you'd normally find me eating. Hidden away behind Holborn station it's an old fashioned pub (tavern) with a narrow staircase that takes you to a dimly lit restaurant upstairs. I'd looked at the menu online before going (obviously) and the food looked good so decided to try it out after being invited down to check out their offerings. I arrived and was shown to our booth seating for the evening, which was next to a long table full of businessmen, who seemed to be delighting in the presumably company paid for beers they were getting through at some speed. I waited for Georgie to arrive, slightly nervous about what to expect in such an odd setting - heavy curtains hung over the windows and every inch of wood panelled wall space was covered in paintings.Georgie arrived and I got stuck into a beer, while she was offered one of seven types of tonic water after she asked for tonic and lime. I forget the one she ended up choosing but it was the best tonic water I've tasted.We decided to share our dishes and things got off to a good start with the starters. The first dish out was trio of mackerel - tartare, grilled and rillette. Each element was really tasty, though it did feel a little like three different dishes on the plate, though that can be expected when ordering a "trio" dish.

Our second starter was seared king scallops with rabbit and sage meatballs, and garden pea puree with lemongrass oil. The flavours balanced well here without either overpowering each other, which made for a good dish. Pea is always great with scallops and the scent of the lemongrass oil was lovely.

For mains we had pan fried halibut with swede puree, razor clams and samphire. We both really liked the halibut and the sauce it was in, but didn't like the razor clam served whole, leaving us to deal with "butchering" it. Served without the clam this dish would be excellent. The sauce was so more-ish and the halibut was cooked just as it should be.

Our second main was less successful - another trio, this time of lamb, and although it felt more like one dish than the mackerel trio had, the meat wasn't cooked well and was a bit tough and chewy, and I really wasn't a fan of serving the dollop of mash potato on top of the cylinder of braised lamb shoulder, nor the lamb belly balanced on top of the cherry tomatoes.... It wasn't a disastrous dish, I just wouldn't order it again.

Pudding was the super sweet Bailey's crème brulee with raspberry sorbet and a shortbread. Not a huge fan of this one, in fact I much preferred the real ale homemade ice cream I had, which was a revelation, as I haven't had beer ice cream before, but will definitely be trying to make my own version at home.

The Ship Tavern is a quirky pub, full of old school charm, serving quite good food. I think if I go back I'll probably stick to the more straightforward menu options, like their fish and chips, and homemade pies. Full info on The Ship can be found here.